Spinal cord
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Review. ⋯ Although there are relatively few studies clearly indicating efficacy in this population, an algorithm for the management of pain following SCI might assist to maximise our effectiveness in the treatment of this condition. It is recognised that choice of treatment is also determined by factors such as medication availability, cost and side effects as well as the preferences and characteristics of the person being treated. Nevertheless, an algorithm is proposed as a way to synthesise our current level of knowledge, identify gaps for further study and aid in the management of this difficult problem.
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Review Biography Historical Article
Admiral Lord Nelson's death: known and unknown--a historical review of the anatomy.
Reviewing documents about Lord Admiral Nelson's wound inflicted at the Battle of Trafalgar and studying the collected data in connection with ballistics and human anatomy. ⋯ The question remains open as to how the musket ball following a relatively straight-line trajectory by entering the body at the acromion, could have divided the left pulmonary artery and damaged the spinal cord later in its course. The mechanism needs further investigation.
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To review the side effects of local injections of botulinum A toxin (BTX-A). ⋯ Generalised side effects after BTX-A injection for voiding disorders are rare but they can be very disabling for spinal cord-injured patients. Although no long-term side effects are reported so far, urologists should be aware that these effects of BTX-A injections are unknown.
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Retrospective study of 432 patients admitted to our institution with a spinal injury over a 5-year period. ⋯ Provision of beds remains the most common preventable reason for delay between referral and admission and is associated with increased hospitalisation. Early liaison with a designated spinal injuries unit, particularly those with cord injury remains vitally important.
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This paper seeks to consider the validity and utility of two related terms in spinal and other injuries: complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) and chronic pain syndrome (CPS). It is argued that the words chronic regional pain syndrome convey neither understanding of the condition nor of its mechanism. ⋯ The diagnosis of CPS groups together ill-defined symptoms under a convenient, but medically untestable and therefore inept label. Patients, lawyers, and support groups commonly deny psychogenesis, with the sadly mistaken notion that this implies a bogus or spurious cause.